The role of EAP in enhancing student support and teacher education in EMI contexts

Dr. Ursula Wingate, Professor of Language Education, King's College London

Dr. Karen Ottewell, Acting Director of the Language Centre and Director of Academic Training for International Students, University of Cambridge

In this talk, Prof. Wingate challenges the wide-spread representation of EMI as a new phenomenon still struggling to establish suitable methods for student support and teacher education. As relevant theoretical and pedagogical approaches have been designed and implemented by the domain of English for Academic Purposes (EAP) for many decades, she argues for recognition of these approaches in EMI contexts and for cross-fertilisation between the two domains. Closer collaboration between EMI and EAP scholarship can raise awareness among university leaders and subject lecturers of students’ academic language and literacy needs and facilitate inclusive genre-based pedagogies that enable students to communicate effectively in their academic discourse communities.

Building on Ursula’s discussion regarding the role of English for Academic Purposes (EAP) in enhancing student support and teacher education within English-Medium Instruction (EMI) contexts, Prof. Karen Ottewell will present two practical insights drawn from her experience with postgraduate students at Cambridge. These insights support the argument that increased collaboration between EMI and EAP would be advantageous not only for universities but, more importantly, for international students. Firstly, students who have previously studied in EMI environments do not always possess the expected advantage when applying for postgraduate programmes in the UK. Secondly, she will outline the EAP provision at Cambridge, highlighting their core areas of focus and the rationale behind them.

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Ursula Wingate is Professor of Language Education in the School of Education, Communication and Society at King’s College London. Her research interests include theoretical and pedagogical models underpinning the development of students’ academic literacy. Based on her recent research project on perceptions and practices surrounding GenAI tools, she proposes pedagogical approaches that empower students to use GenAI ethically and effectively in their academic writing.

Professor Karen Ottewell is Acting Director of the Language Centre and Director of Academic Development and Training for International Students (ADTIS) at the University of Cambridge. She specialises in the cultural influence on writing, supporting the development of written articulacy at PG level, assessment design, and language assessment literacy.